COVER
Tinubu Approves Committee to Revive Ajaokuta Steel Plant
By David Torough, Abuja
President Bola Tinubu has approved the formation of a committee comprising key stakeholders to revive the Ajaokuta steel plant to boost economic growth.
The committee is made up of the Minister of Steel Development, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, and Solid Minerals.
The Minister of Steel, Shuaibu Abubakar-Audu disclosed this to State House Correspondents on Thursday in Abuja after he and the Minister of Defence, Mohammed Badaru briefed the President on their recent trip to China.
Abubakar-Audu underscored critical points for the plant’s revival, emphasising the establishment of military hardware capabilities.
He explained that a Chinese steel group, Lu’an Steel Holding Group has committed to investing in a new plant in Nigeria, while an Indian steel group plans to send an advanced team for collaboration.
“We just saw Mr. President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the minister of defense, Alhaji Mohammed Badaru and I myself, met with him earlier this afternoon. And we discussed the three critical matters. Number one, we briefed him on the Minister of Defence and I’s recent trip to China.
“We were in China on the 1st of January 2024, we were there till the 8th of January. And met with the Lu’an Steel Holding Group, which is one of the largest steel companies in China, and is among the top 20 steel companies in China. They produce about 20 million metric tons of steel per annum.
“We had very meaningful discussions with them, and they agreed and made a commitment to set up a new steel plant in Nigeria, where thousands of jobs would be created, and they would invest billions of dollars in foreign direct investments into Nigeria.
“In that same regard as well, basically, our discussions with Lu’an Steel Holding Group, they mentioned that they would send an advanced team to Nigeria after the Chinese New Year, sometime at the end of February 2024. And we briefed Mr. President that when the team is on ground, we would like to also give them audience with Mr. President, which he approved. Mr President was very happy with the development.
“The third thing as well, is that the reason the Minister of Defence and I jointly met with Mr. President was that we’re setting up a military hardware capacity and capability in Ajaokuta steel plant and based on that the Chinese team would help us to build that military hardware capabilities in Ajaokuta, in one of the production units. And so that’s the first agenda on the table for the joint meeting,” the minister said.
According to him, the agenda extended to the plant’s contribution to national infrastructure projects through the production of iron rods.
“The second agenda for discussion with Mr. President, was that Mr. President gave me approval towards the end of last year to raise some money to restart and rebuild the Light steel Mill of the Ajaokuta Steel Plant to be able to produce iron rods, which iron rods would be taken by the Ministry of works.
“The Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, has already written a letter to me through his ministry, guaranteeing that they will be off takers in the iron rods that are being produced. Basically, the President under the Renewed Hope Agenda, which the Minister of works is driving, plans to construct about 30,000 kilometres of roads across Nigeria, where they will need about 7 million metric tons of iron road.
We can produce about 400,000 tons of those iron rods in Ajaokuta if we’re able to restart the steel plant.”
Abubakar-Audu also said the President has also approved local fundraising initiatives.
“Mr President gave approval for us to raise money locally. The first phase of the project for Ajaokuta Steel Plant, to revive the entire steel plant will cost somewhere between $2 to $5 million and however to restart the light steel section of the mill is going to cost about N35 billion. So we’re going to the market to show proof of consent to raise this money from local financial institutions to be able to restart that.
“We’ve gotten some offer letters from some financial institutions. And we think that you know, we should be able to conclude that in the next few days or few weeks for us to be able to hit the ground in Ajaokuta and start that project.
“The last item on the agenda was feedback to Mr. President on Jindal steel. If you recollect on the sidelines of the G-20. Meeting in India, Jindal steel committed to invest in $5 billion. So I briefed Mr. President and I’ve met with representatives of Jindal steel, and they’re very serious about their commitment. And we’re currently looking for a land that is close to a gas station that has a port and is close to the natural or mineral resources such as, you know, iron ore and the likes to be able to get them the ideal location. Either they set up a greenfield or they acquire an existing plant, such as, you know, the Delta steel plant.
“So those are the things on the table. Mr. President has given us go ahead to set up a committee with some very critical stakeholders within the government, including the likes of the minister of finance the CME, including the likes of the Minister of trade and investments, to the Minister of Defense, Minister of Solid Minerals and myself to be able to get this thing running and get it off the ground.
“So the Renewed Hope Agenda is here to stay. We think that if we’re able to complete all these projects that have been approved by Mr. President, including the revival of Ajaokuta, we should be able to create not less than 500,000 jobs and bring billions of dollars into the economy. And so Mr. President is very happy with that development. And the Minister of Defense and Alhaji Mohammed Badaru and I came to brief Mr. President, this afternoon thank you very much.”
Asked the initial amount that will be invested, the minister said: “It will be in billions of dollars. The final amount has not been determined, when they come to the country and make a determination they would meet Mr. President, they will meet key stakeholders, we would look at a map of where the key mineral resources are, where will give them access to be able to transport their goods to the final products in the markets, to rail lines, ports, gas, you know, a big enough land to be able to accommodate everything that is required. Once that is determined they will then know how much they’re going to invest but it will be in billions of dollars, but the exact amount has not been determined.”
The Minister acknowledged challenges facing the plant, emphasising the gradual nature of Ajaokuta Steel Plant’s revival and the need for support from all stakeholders, including the Transmission Company of Nigeria.
Asked how investors will take the government serious with the disconnection of electricity from Ajaokuta Steel Plant due to N30 billion debt and what the explanation for the debt is since the plant has not been in dull capacity, Abubakar-Audu said investigation was ongoing.
He said: “I mean these are some of the things that need to be clearly looked into. Like you mentioned, one of the things I spoke to the MD of Ajaokuta today (Thursday), and this was one of the questions I asked and we’re going to get to the bottom of it, why consumption of so much electricity in a place that is not operating at full capacity. Part of what we also need to do is that we’re trying to revive Ajaokuta in a collegiate system, in piecemeal, and so we may not have the capacity to be able to pay all those outstanding amounts immediately.
“Part of what the MD of Ajaokuta told me is that most of the money is in interest payments. And NBET (the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading), the electricity company that has disconnected it, is also a government agency. So if we as a government ministry, government agency are trying to revive Ajaokuta working hard to do that, we should not have another hand within the same government making things very difficult for us.
“And so part of what we plan to do is to sit down on the table in the next few days as quickly as possible to be able to come up with a plan so that they can put it back on the grid and put things back in order. Is a gradual process and Ajaokuta cannot be revived overnight. This is a plant that has not been working for 45 years, it is a difficult task to try and get it back on track.
“So, we need the support of the entire government apparatus, we need support from stakeholders. We need support from everyone to be able to do this difficult job. This job is not a job that myself and Mr. President can do it alone. We need the support of everyone including the electricity company to be able to help us to get this project back on track so that we can create the hundreds of thousands of jobs I want to create for Nigerians.“
By David Torough, Abuja
The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) said even though citizens of Nigeria have the constitutional right to carry out peaceful protest to express their feelings, it would not allow anarchy to destroy the country by some unscrupulous elements.The Director, Defence Media Operations, Maj.
-Gen. Edward Buba said this while briefing newsmen on the operations of the armed forces yesterday in Abuja. Daily Asset reports that on Oct. 20, 2020 soldiers opened fire on End SARS protesters at the Lekki toll gate (Admiralty Circle Plaza) in Lagos State causing the death of protesters.Buba alleged that the planned nationwide protest has the potential of degenerating into anarchy and reign of terror based on the situational analysis by the military high command.He said the military had thoroughly examined several factors such as whether or not the planned protest was motivated by opposition politics, independent parties, sovereign interference or terrorist groups amongst others.He said it was also examined to ascertain whether or not other organisations had fed on the frustrations of Nigerians to create the situation.“However, for us in the military, the constitution is clear as to how and when the military gets involved.“The constitution also clearly defines the roles and functions of the armed forces.“On the other hand, while citizens have a constitutional right to peaceful protest, they do not have a right to mobilise for anarchy in order to unleash terror.“The contemporary context of the planned protest is to shadow happenings in Kenya which has so far been violent and unresolved to date.“Given the situation, there are already indicators that unscrupulous elements are bent on hijacking the planned protest for violent purposes,” he said.Buba revealed that there were signs of status related violence such that persons with things as basic as smart phones and cars were targets, not leaving out those that own houses and shops.Other targets, according to him include: places of worship, businesses, markets, persons of other ethnic groups and members of opposing political parties among others.“Based on the foregoing, the level of violence envisaged is best described as a state of anarchy.“It is for this reason the armed forces will not watch and allow the nation spiral out of control to such low levels.“Basically, the military has been exposed to wars and has witnessed situations of anarchy in countries ravaged by war, particularly during ECOMOG or during peacekeeping operations.“It is for this reason that troops will act dutifully to forestall such ugly occurrences from happening in our nation,” he added.Buba urged the citizens to note that both the timing and the atmosphere of hardship in the country had made the planned protest different from others in the past.He added that it was incumbent upon all to quench the fires of violence rather than ignite them.“It is time to let cool heads prevail in order for the government to further remedy the situation and make our nation flourish again,” he added.On the operations of the military across the country, Buba said troops eliminated 106 terrorists, apprehended 164 others and rescued 103 hostages in different operations in the last one week.He said the troops recovered 125 assorted weapons and 1,522 ammunition, comprising 41 AK47 rifles, one PKT gun, 24 locally fabricated guns, 28 dane guns and one pump action gun.Buba said the troops recovered 755 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 623 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 102 rounds of 7.62 x 54mm, 63 live cartridges and 247 empty cases of 7.62mm ammo.“Others are: 22 AK47 magazines, one baofeng radio, 22 vehicles, 31 motorcycles, two bicycles, 10 mobile phones and the sum of N2.9 amongst other items,” he said.In the North-east, Buba said the troops of Operation Hadin Kai recorded successes leading to the surrendering of Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists and their families within the week.He said a total of 1,760 BH/ISWAP terrorists’ fighters and family members consisting 117 male adults, 345 adult females and 628 children surrendered within the week.According to him, troops neutralised 41 terrorists, arrested 27 suspects and rescued 16 kidnapped hostages as well as recovery of a cache of arms and ammunition.In the North-central, Buba said the troops of Operations Safe Haven and Whirl Stroke eliminated 12 insurgents, arrested 39 violent extremists and rescued 39 kidnapped hostages within the week.According to him, troops neutralised 41 terrorists, arrested 27 suspects and rescued 16 kidnapped hostages as well as recovery of a cache of arms and ammunition.In the North-central, Buba said the troops of Operations Safe Haven and Whirl Stroke eliminated 12 insurgents, arrested 39 violent extremists and rescued 39 kidnapped hostages within the week.He said the troops recovered several arms and ammunition comprising 21 AK47 rifles, 14 fabricated pistols, 15 dane guns, 285 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, and 200 rounds of 7.62mm NATO.In the North-west, Buba said the troops of Operation Hadarin Daji neutralised 22 terrorists, arrested 23 terrorists and rescued 32 kidnapped hostages as well as recovered a cache of arms.Under Operation Whirl Punch, he said the troops neutralised eight terrorists, arrested 20 suspects and rescued 12 kidnapped hostages as well as recovered arms and the sum of N2.9 million amongst others.In the Niger Delta, Buba said the troops of Operation Delta Safe had maintained momentum against the activities of crude oil thieves, destroying several illegal refining sites and recovered stolen products.He said the troops recovered 802,200 litres of stolen crude oil, 121,900 litres of illegally refined AGO and 450 litres of DPK within the week.According to him, troops discovered and destroyed 20 dugout pits, 24 boats and 34 storage tanks, as well as recovered 56 cooking ovens, two speedboats, 14 pumping machines, 18 drums, 22 vehicles and motorcycles.He added that a total of 36 illegal refining sites were destroyed while a total of 32 suspected oil thieves and other violent extremists were apprehended in the region.In the South-east, the defence spokesman said the troops of Operation UDO KA neutralised three terrorists, arrested 22 violent extremists and rescued four kidnapped hostages.“Troops recovered one pump action gun, 31 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 23 cartridges, one baofeng radio, six mobile phones amongst other.“All recovered items, arrested suspects and rescued hostages were handed over to the relevant authorities for further action,” he said.
By David Torough, Abuja
Benue State Governor Hyacinth Alia has solicited the support of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in streamlining the state’s economy to engender economic growth, employment, the development of vital infrastructure and technology, as well as enhance financial inclusion.
The governor made the appeal when he paid a courtesy visit to the CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso in Abuja. This was contained in a Statement on Thursday by the Principal Special Assistant to the Governor on Media, Publicity and Communications Strategy, Bridget Tikyaa. He said that Benue State has vast opportunities in agriculture, solid minerals, and other areas which it wanted the CBN to support the government to fully harness for local and international markets.Alia also urged the apex bank to support the state with its expertise in developing appropriate data in all the key areas of development for proper planning and strategic engagement with investors.Alia told the CBN Governor that the state’s newly created Bureau of Statistics aims at enhancing the state’s statistical systems, boosting our economy through job creation and foreign exchange activities and supporting agricultural sector.The governor said, “We seek your support in providing system strengthening and equipment infrastructure for the Benue State Bureau of Statistics.“This support will not only benefit the Benue State Government but will also enhance the capabilities of the CBN and Nigeria at large.“A well-supported statistical system ensures we have reliable data to guide our economic policies and development strategies.”Alia reeled out other areas of support and collaboration with the CBN to boost the economy of Benue State.These include support for the Benue State Bureau of Statistics to generate accurate data and conduct analysis.The governor sought CBN’s support in implementing favourable monetary policies to stabilise the economy and control inflation.He also sought for the training and capacity-building programmes for financial managers and policymakers in the state to enhance their ability to manage the state economy more effectively.The governor requested the CBN to facilitate partnership with development finance institutions to fund large-scale projects such as agricultural mechanization, industrial parks, special economic zones, and major infrastructure projects to spur economic development across the state.Alia urged the apex bank to work with the Benue State Government to develop and implement policies that improve the business environment, reduce bureaucracy, and attract domestic and foreign investments.Other areas, he said, were in providing technical assistance and support for economic planning, budget management, and the implementation of economic reforms to strengthen the state’s economic framework.He said there was a need to encourage the adoption of digital finance solutions and innovations to enhance efficiency, reduce costs, and broaden access to financial services across the state.The governor appreciated the CBN for its support to the state, including the release of 60 trailers loaded with fertiliser, which was distributed to farmers to boost food production and achieve food security.In his remarks, Cordoso commended Alia for the visit and thanked him for the initiatives aimed at diversifying the economy.Cordoso noted that prevailing insecurity in food producing areas and high cost of transportation of farm produce are also contributing to the rise in food inflation in the country.He said the increasing activities of middlemen who often finance smallholder farmers, aggregate, hoard and move farm produce across the border to neighbouring countries, has contributed to the problem of scarcity of foodstuffs across the country.The CBN governor said there was a need to check such activities in order to address the food supply deficit in the Nigerian market and moderate food prices.The CBN governor assured the Governor that the bank would ensure credit development financial institutions, the Bank of Industry, Bank of Agriculture partner the state for more grants and loan facilities for effective growth and development in various sectors.He assured the governor that the CBN was ready to work with the Benue state government in various areas to boost the state’s economy.
By Lubem Myaornyi, Abuja
President Bola Tinubu extended his heartfelt commiserations to the family of the late Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu who passed away yesterday.Chief Iwuanyanwu who was the President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide was an accomplished businessman and notable politician.
Tinubu condoled with the Imo State Government, the friends and associates of the deceased, and Ndi Igbo over this irreparable loss. The president affirmed that the departed elder statesman will always be remembered for his remarkable legacy and prayed for the repose of his soul and comfort to his family. The son of the deceased, Jide Iwuanyanwu announced his demise in a statement yesterday in Owerri.The statement read, “The Iwuanyanwu family of Umuohii Atta in Ikeduru Local Government Area of Imo State announces the demise of our patriarch, Engr Chief Emmanuel Chukwuemeka Iwuanyanwu-Ahaejiagamba Ndigbo.“Chief Iwuanyanwu died on Thursday, July 25, 2024, after a brief illness. He was aged 82.“Chief Iwuanyanwu is survived by his wife Lady Princess Iwuanyanwu many children and grandchildren including Dr Mrs Nwadiuto Iheakanwa Managing Director Champion Newspapers. Details of the burial will be announced later by the family after due consultations.”
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